Nalagarh unit to lose power for unscientific dumping of fly ash
The High Court has directed the HP State Electricity Board Limited to disconnect the electricity connection of an industrial firm at Malkhumajra village in Nalagarh for unscientifically dumping fly ash along the catchment of Ratta river.
The court, while acting on a public interest litigation in its order issued last evening, noted that ash was found dumped along the catchment of Ratta river unscientifically by M/s Claridge Moulded Company Limited.
The case has exposed the abject indifference of an industrial firm to adherence of environmental norms and repeating an offence without caring for the repercussions.
SP Baddi has also been issued a show cause notice and asked as to why an FIR has not been registered against the firm when nuisance is writ large.
The officials of State Pollution Control Board had received an information that fly ash from a boiler had been illegally dumped along the catchment of Ratta river in August on the land which was allotted to a tractor-manufacturing company by the Department of Industries. An inspection of the site was carried out and a show cause notice was issued to the said firm on August 24 by the board officials.
The site was cleared of the dumped fly ash by the tractor-manufacturing firm and its management informed the officials of the SPCB that they had lodged an FIR in the police station Baddi on August 22 regarding this illegal activity on their land by unknown persons during the odd hours.
No reply was, however, received from the Claridge Moulded Company by the SPCB after issuance of a show cause notice.
The site was again inspected on October 11 after receipt of another complaint regarding the illegal dumping of fly ash. The same unit was found responsible for the illegal act and another show cause notice was slapped to the unit by the board staff on October 11. Despite this the unit management remained unresponsive.
Following repeated violation by the unit, its case was recommended for disconnection of power supply by the SPCB’s Regional office, Baddi in October for taking action under Section 31-A of Air Act, 1981 and 33-A of Water Act, 1974 as per the norms.
